His younger brother and President Gotapaya Rajapaksa, the 74-year-old leader of the Sri Lankan People's Party, was sworn in for the ninth parliament in the sacred Rajamha Viharaya in Kelaniya, a northern suburb of Colombo.
Former Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa was sworn in on Sunday as the new prime minister at a historic Buddhist temple, days after his party won a landslide victory in the general election.
His younger brother and President Gotapaya Rajapaksa, the 74-year-old leader of the Sri Lankan People's Party, took the constitutional oath of the ninth parliament in the sacred Rajamha Viharaya in Kelania, a northern suburb of Colombo.
Mahinda Rajapaksa completed 50 years of parliamentary politics in July this year. He was elected MP in Parliament at the age of 24 in 1970. Since then, he has been elected president twice and appointed prime minister three times.
The People's Party of Sierra Leone, led by Mahinda Rajapaksa, scored a landslide victory in the general elections on 5 August, securing the two-thirds majority in Parliament needed to amend the constitution to consolidate the Rajapaksa family's strong hold on power.
The Mahinda Rajapaksa polled more than 500,000 individual preference votes - the highest percentage ever recorded by a candidate in election history.
The People's Party of Sierra Leone won 145 constituencies and won 150 seats with its allies, with a two-thirds majority in the 225-member parliament.
Government and state ministers and deputy ministers are expected to take the oath on Monday.
The Rajapaksa family - including SLPP founder and patriotic organizer Basil Rajapaksa, 69, the younger brother of Gotabaya Rajapaksa, 71, and Mahinda Rajapaksa - dominated Sri Lankan politics for two decades.
Mahinda Rajapaksa previously held the office of President for nearly a decade from 2005 to 2015.
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa had won the presidential election in November on the People's Party of Sierra Leone card.
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